The classic image of apocalypse preparation involves an underground bunker packed with enough food and water to last for years.
But according to one expert, surviving a true end-of-the-world scenario would depend less on what you store and more on what you know how to do.
Kezia Barker, from Liverpool John Moores University, argues that the familiar doomsday-prepper approach may offer only limited protection if society collapses.
Instead, Dr Barker recommends developing practical abilities now—many of which can be learned through everyday hobbies and could prove valuable during an apocalyptic emergency.
A carefully stored food supply may provide temporary security, while a collection of survival equipment is of little use without the knowledge to operate it properly.
Her advice is to focus on transferable skills such as bushcraft, foraging, growing food and preserving what you harvest.
Even an apparently simple pastime such as carving wooden spoons, she suggests, could be more practical in the long run than simply accumulating supplies.
An expert has outlined the abilities that could matter most in an apocalypse, with bushcraft, foraging and gardening potentially more useful than hoarding provisions. Pictured: The post-apocalyptic film The Dog Stars
Dr Barker specialises in how people respond to environmental insecurity and has closely examined online communities devoted to disaster preparedness.
Within these forums, survivalists who fear a societal breakdown exchange ideas about the equipment, provisions and tactics they believe could help them endure.
The conversations range from bunker construction to the abilities often described as “zombie apocalypse skills”.
These are the practical capabilities people hope to contribute to a post-apocalyptic community, including their so-called MAG, or mutual assistance group.
However, building this kind of resilience does not require becoming a committed doomsday prepper—and many of the skills would remain useful in ordinary life.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Dr Barker said the most valuable quality is being resourceful and adaptable: someone capable of handling a range of problems. She suggested beginning with first aid training.
Learning first aid provides basic medical knowledge, but it also teaches people to remain composed, assess what is happening around them and decide which actions should come first during a crisis.
It is also a skill with obvious benefits, even if the predicted apocalypse never arrives.
If a major collapse did occur, securing a reliable source of food would quickly become one of the most urgent challenges.
In a doomsday situation, knowing how to locate food and start a fire could be essential, as demonstrated by television bushcraft expert Ray Mears
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Stored food could provide short-term support, but experts say hobbies that build practical, transferable abilities offer greater long-term value—and remain worthwhile if the world continues as normal. Pictured: A doomsday prepper’s food supply
For that reason, Dr Barker identifies growing and preserving food as a strong starting point for anyone interested in practical survival skills.
If you don’t have access to an allotment or green space of your own, you can join a community garden and learn how to produce food in a small space.
Even if you can’t grow any food at all, learning some traditional preserving or pickling techniques is one of the easiest hobbies to start with that can also help you in the apocalypse.
‘This teaches you about making do in scarcity; how to eke out supplies, what is perishable and what can be stored,’ says Dr Barker.
If that doesn’t sound like your kind of thing, the growing trend for bushcraft and foraging is also a fantastic place to start.
Bushcraft courses are widely available around the country and can teach you the basics of fire starting, water purification, and shelter building.
Alternatively, foraging is a fantastic hobby that can be useful whether or not the world really ends.
Dr Barker says: ‘It has so many benefits. You learn about edible plants in your local environment, so it’s about connecting to nature, the seasons and reading natural signs.
‘It helps with eco-anxiety, as time spent in nature connecting to natural rhythms is a salve, and can motivate people to care for local environments.’
Getting started with this traditional pastime has never been easier, but Dr Barker warns would-be foragers against using AI photo identification tools as a shortcut.
These not only create a serious risk of poisoning yourself, but also mean your skills won’t be useful if the internet ever goes down.
Finally, although it might not be particularly glamorous, the simple art of spoon-whittling could be a vital zombie apocalypse skill.
While you might not need endless supplies of spoons in the apocalypse, you might need wooden tools, feather sticks for fire-lighting, or replacement pegs for your tent.
But, broader than that, learning how to carve something simple like a spoon teaches you a range of skills that could become useful in many different situations.
Dr Barker says: ‘It teaches you safe knife-handling skills, like being sensitive and paying close attention to the material you are using.
‘It teaches you to think about how to use different materials to solve different problems, and gives confidence that you can make things for yourself.’
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